She was staring out at the bay
soaked to the bone; it at least helped to cover her
tears. Nick gently placed the blanket around her
shoulders and she just pulled it tight around herself but
didn't make a move to go into the house. She had gotten
as far as the cliff not far from the house when the pain
had gotten the best of her, pain she'd had over four
years to learn to live with but that would never leave
her soul.

She had heard and felt them approach and spoke out to
the sea. "You asked me what more my parents could do
to me? Nothing. Not after that moment, because in one
moment they did the worst they ever could. They did
things that hurt after that, but It was just a
repetition. It always just would have been more of the
same. They never could have hurt me like that
again." She spoke loudly enough to be heard, forcing
her anger at them past the pain of her loss. It didn't
really work though; she had loved him so much she doubted
she would ever get over the pain and guilt of his death.
Knowing that if it weren't for her he would have lived so
much longer.

"Tangye why didn't you tell me?" Rachel
asked gently, her voice almost swept away with the stormy
winds. They were all gathered outside to help her, none
knowing what to do for her to ease the crushing weight on
her heart.

"Because for a few moments I got to believe that
you would come running down here and say you found him. I
let myself believe that you would tell me he was working
for some ad agency or pr office somewhere in that
city." She gestured to the points of light across
the bay. "For a few minutes I could get caught up in
the idea that he might come back to me. That one last
time I would get to see Brian's face, his eyes that could
have guided me out of the darkest places." She shook
her wet head. "But not a moment of it was a terrible
dream."

"I'm so sorry." Kat clutched to her mother
protectively as Derek did on Rachel's other side, but
their touch did no good to make her feel better about the
disappointment she delivered to the auburn headed woman.

"Don't be, it was a nice moment to have."
Nick watched as the smile formed on her lips but vanished
as quickly as it had found any strength. "He kissed
me, for the first time, he had no idea my father was
watching him. Then " She shut her eyes tightly
fighting back the memories but Derek was struck by them
through his Sight and gasped. "He beat him. This boy
that my dad had known for years, a kid that he loved like
his own son, and he wouldn't stop. And he did it all
because Brian had dared to love me." She felt the
bile rise in her throat but fought that back as well, her
voice kept failing her though. "His last words to me
where that it was okay, because he knew he could come
back to me and help comfort me through whatever had me.
But they never let him back in, they fought him off and
eventually he just, was gone. After that the world just
died too, until "

She turned and buried her head against Nick's chest
who just gripped her tightly, holding onto her as though
he could save her from the past, keeping it all at bay.
"I thought he'd do the same to you Nick, that I'd
have to watch it again. When he had you on the floor and
was hovering over you it was like I was back in that
moment when I failed Brian. I couldn't have stood by and
not acted. I'm so sorry you had to be hurt for me to find
it within myself to act." She knew that only he
could hear her now as the waves crashed drowning out her
voice. "I would rather die then have caused that
twice." She looked up at him, her hand resting
against his cheek. She bit down on her upper lip, her
eyes taking in everything about him for a moment.
"You have eyes like him, eyes that could guide me
from the darkest places."

Her words struck Nick. The faith she seemed to have in
him. "Tan, I'm so sorry, I don't know what to say
but I'm sorry." He kissed the top of her head as the
others looked on with a deep ache in all of their eyes.
"Just let it go, let it wash away now." She
kept her arms around him refusing to let go.

*****

She didn't let go of him for the next six hours and
despite his natural antsy tendencies he had never said a
word in complaint. He just held her in his strong arms
protecting her from things he couldn't even see, that he
prayed were really gone now. He had taken her upstairs to
her new room, wrapped a dry blanket around her, and then
managed to get her under the comforter and into bed.
Eventually her shivering had stopped along with the
tears. Finally she had drifted off to sleep, her arms
still around his waist, head resting on his chest. He
kept rubbing her back in a small but soothing gesture. He
felt his eyes getting heavy as the first rays of sunlight
crept into the room.

There was a light knock at the door and Kat came
cautiously in the room. The little girl smiled to see
Tangye and Nick snuggled so close together in the large
bed. Nick's chin rested on the top of Tangye's head now
and both of them were breathing regularly and softly. Kat
crossed to the bed and carefully climbed up. She reached
around Tangye and hugged her from the other side. Nick
stirred in his slumber, his eyes struggling open. He
whispered to the girl, proud though to see her being so
caring.

"Careful Kitty Kat she just got to sleep a little
while ago." The child meekly nodded.

"She's so sad Nick, do you think we can help
her?" Such innocence in the eyes that looked up at
him it made him hate himself for not being able to
promise her that.

"We're going to try, and I want to start now.
Will you stay here while I go talk to Derek for a few
minutes." The girl nodded without any hesitation at
all. Slowly Nick slid himself from under Tangye,
carefully placing her head on the pillow. He pulled the
blankets up under her chin and silently made his way out
of the room. Every bone in his body ached but he didn't
voice his complaints. He had just fallen asleep himself
and looked it when he burst into Derek's office without
announcement of any kind.

"I want him the hell off of the island now."
The anger that had been building in him all night as he
held her crying against himself, erupted.

Derek's head jerked up and was surprised to see the
absolute rage in Nick's eyes. Before he could say
anything Nick went on yelling.

"I want everything about him off the island, both
of them. I don't want her accidentally stumbling upon
their names or anything else. I want their names off that
plaque and I want their bodies off the island. I don't
care if you throw them in a trash heap but he won't stay
here." Nick yelled, not even thinking that everyone
would probably be woken up by his outburst.

Derek couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Nick
like this. He had seen his younger colleague angry plenty
of times but this time it had passion behind it. Nothing
was going to stop him even if he had to go out back and
do it himself. "I've already arranged it Nick,
they'll be moved tomorrow morning, though I must say the
coordinator wasn't amused, they were only moved here two
days ago." Derek kept his voice logical which just
seemed to infuriate his friend more.

"I give a shit?" Nick snapped. He knew his
anger was misdirected right now but he couldn't control
himself. "You know what he did to her. I know you
had a vision last night, do you want that monster on the
island?"

"Nick hard as it is to believe the body out there
is not the monster. The body was the man Tangye knew as a
child, a man I think she'll tell you someday loved her
very dearly. The monster came later, but that doesn't
change the fact I don't think their graves should be
here. I know it's hard to understand but something
changed his spirit, and her mother's. Still I don't think
it will help her recovery at all knowing that memory is
so close." Nick's face seemed to give in to Derek's
logic and he dropped into one of the leather chairs,
covering his face with his hands.

"What can we do? How do we help her?" His
voice was so tired but there was still a power behind it.
The power of his feelings for the young woman whose eyes
had cried out to him so desperately since the first
moment he saw them.

"Nick she has a long road ahead of her. She has
to learn to face what was done to her, hiding away from
it will just cause her more pain in the future."
Nick's head jerked up his hazel eyes burning into his
precept. "It's true Nick." Derek defended
himself.

"Don't do that Derek, don't try to sneak those
little comments in about me." His voice was a low
growl that made Derek edge back slightly.

"Sorry Nick but Rachel will tell you the same
thing. Try to get her to talk to you about it, let her
get it all out so she doesn't feel like she has to hide
any of it. She has a lot of guards up right now and those
need to come down so she can move to the next step of her
life. Listen and just show her you care." Derek
paused; knowing the next thing that he was going to say
would upset Nick. But he had to also bring it up.
"Nick, I think you should take things between you
two very slowly. I know you feel drawn to her but that
could just be a way for her to avoid the past. Give her
some time and then, eventually, if you still feel the
same way " Derek was entering new territory
here, he felt like he was lecturing his child on
relationships and that had never before been something he
had to do.

"Derek I think I could love her." His eyes
spoke his agony clearly enough. Afraid that his feelings
for this girl would never be reciprocated, or that
someway they would end up hurting her. Despite Nick's
attempts to always be strong all of his friends knew him
to have a sensitive soul, one that never wanted to cause
pain to anyone in his life.

"Nick I know you think that, and it might be true
but it has to be taken slowly. You feel drawn to her for
many reasons, I know that. You know she'll understand
things about you that so few people do. And you want to
help her, but giving her too much at once could just
overload her." Derek kept his voice even yet it
showed how deeply he cared for the young man just by the
fact he was discussing this, not ordering him.

"I look at her and I hurt, what's that
mean?" Her smile barely touched her lips. She hadn't
intended to hear the conversation but something in Nick's
voice kept her standing in her place just at the edge of
the doorway. Something vaguely familiar, something with
so much promise to it.

Derek's smile was full of pride as he looked down at
him, proud of his youngest "son." "I think
you know. She's not going anywhere for now Nick, and I've
seen the way she looks at you when you don't know she is,
I don't think she wants to leave you." She turned
from the door suddenly feeling like she had been caught
in some improper behavior, hearing things she shouldn't
be privilege to. She didn't even see Philip standing
there before she ran right into his chest. His blue hazel
eyes looked down at her with such a kindness it made her
breath catch. How could he really ever be that caring?

"Um, hi, I wasn't listening in, I was just
waiting for a chance to break in didn't seem
to be one I, ah " She stammered out the
lame excuse. He gave her his best stern look but couldn't
control the smile that came to his lips at her
embarrassment, at least someone else in the house could
blush as many shades as him.

"It's alright Tangye, I won't tell them you heard
anything." He led her away from the door so they
would not be overheard.

"I didn't think a priest could lie." She
eyed him suspiciously.

"It's not a lie unless they ask, I doubt they
will." He wasn't sure how to broach the subject with
her but he desperately felt the need to talk to her.

She turned to look at him with those knowing eyes,
some of her strands of brown hair tumbling down into her
face. She brushed them away and nodded at him. "Just
ask Philip, I can tell you want to."

"Are you feeling any better?" He felt
foolish asking, afraid the question would serve as a
reminder that she should be hurting when she seemed to be
past it for a moment.

"Yeah, I needed a little rest. It hurts, but, God
doesn't give us more then we can handle, right?" He
was taken back by her words, by the belief she seemed to
have in them despite the horrors that had been delivered
upon her slender shoulders.

"True but sometimes we do need a little help to
get through these things. If you want to talk to anyone,
I would be happy to be there for you." Her intense
eyes turned up to him again and quickly read his
sincerity. She reached out to him without considering
what she was doing, gripping his hand within her own and
squeezing it ever so gently.

"In time I might take you up on that, but I need
a little fresh, new air for now. No bad memories. I just
want to abandon it all on the roadside for awhile, come
back and get it when I'm ready for it." She walked
down the halls with him, going nowhere in particular.
Just taking comfort in the moment of ease, a moment
lacking any expectations. "Actually Philip, I was
wondering, if well I haven't been to mass in about
six years, I would like to go again, would you mind
taking me?" He was swept into her smile before he
even knew it was happening and just nodded at her.
"Thank you Philip, I can borrow clothes from Alex,
is there a mass tonight?"

"Yes actually there is, and yours truly is saying
it." Her smile brightened. "But I must admit I
don't think Alex's clothes will fit you, she has several
inches on you. I'm sure Derek will give you some money to
get some clothes though." His accented voice seemed
to almost be teasing her.

"I hate to ask for that. I just keep taking from
him and I have my inheritance after all." The
remorse was clear and Philip hated seeing it but knew no
way to dispel it. That would have to be something Derek
dealt with in her. Among other things. Philip remembered
Derek's words about Tangye's great-grandfather, who she
probably knew so little about. 'He personified what the
Legacy stood for' and already the priest could see those
traits in his descendant. A strong core of beliefs, a
desire to protect others who could not protect
themselves. Traits that would serve the Legacy well and
would also serve her personally time and time again. But
those ties were all things Derek would have to explain
the source of to her.

"It will take a few days to sort out the legal
issues with that, set up accounts and all that. You can
pay Derek back, though, I'm sure he won't take it."
Philip smiled so kindly down to her for a moment all of
the past vanished in the face of his smile. He lead her
off down the hall where Dominick was just exiting the
room she had been put in.

"Miss Tangye I had your clothes washed for you
and put them on your bed. I hope you're thinking to get
more, one outfit just doesn't seem right for a pretty
young woman." His words weren't the least bit
condescending in her opinion, they just reflected his
quiet, simple way of showing how much he cared for those
living in the house. She looked down at the pair of
sweatpants and T-shirt she had borrowed from Nick the day
before. They were several sizes too large for her and
Philip was right she wouldn't fit in Alex's clothes
either. She had to get some clothes, which meant
borrowing money, though she hated the idea of taking more
from them.

"Thank you Dominick, we were just discussin'
that. You can get dressed and I'll talk to Alex and
Derek. I'm sure that Alex would be much more suitable
shopping partner then a priest." She laughed
slightly and surprised him by pushing herself up on her
toes to give him a kiss on the cheek. She then stepped
into her room and with one more sweet smile to him she
shut the door and he went off to tell his plans to the
others.

*****

She leaned against the thick oak door gasping to force
air into her lungs wishing she could control the tears
flowing so freely from her eyes. She had barely made it
into the room before breaking down, glad she held it in
long enough for Philip not to see it.

She wanted so badly to leave them in the past, to
start over here and for awhile this morning being held in
Nick's strong arms it had seemed possible. But they were
always there, no longer in a form that could physically
hurt her but they still had such power over her mind.
"Enough Tangye Mauveen. You won in the end, you beat
them. Derek can help you learn to use your talents and
you can make sure that they won't come back. It's
over " She slid down to the floor, burying her
face against her knees. "And you saved Nick. You
failed Brian but you saved Nick." There was a light
knock on the door that caused her to jump. "Okay,
grow up Tangye. These people have been good to you don't
drag them down." She whispered to herself as she
wiped the rest of her tears away and pulled the door open
to find Kat standing there, shifting awkwardly, and not
knowing if she should be here.

"Hey there Kitten, what's up?" She put on
her best face for the young girl.

"I heard you." Kat answered, her blue eyes
spoke all of her concern. "Are you okay?"
Tangye reached out and took Kat's hand and led her over
to a chair in the corner. She lifted Kat up into her lap.

"I got hurt really bad Kat it will take me awhile
to get past that." She knew that she shouldn't tell
the little girl too much about what had happened, but the
child did deserve some type of an explanation. "You
know all about ghosts right Kat?" She nodded.
"Well, I see them, a lot of them, and two decided to
hurt me."

"Your mom and dad?" She was a little
surprised that Kat knew that much but nodded.

"In a way that's who they were. But once my mom
and dad were great people, like your mom. They loved me.
When they died though, something changed in them, they
got angry and Well, Kat they just got really
angry." She kissed Kat's soft hair not wanting to
frighten her by telling her any details. She also
admitted to herself that it always hurt more and seemed
fresher when she even thought of the details.

"I'm sorry they did that to you. I saw my daddy
and brother again and I was really happy about it, but
sad because they couldn't stay." Tangye smiled and
hugged Kat tightly.

"I'm glad you got to see them again Kat, that you
got to tell them goodbye." She looked around the
room suddenly. Kat followed suit but saw nothing that
should have drawn her attention. "Listen sweetie,
um, I really appreciate you coming in to check on me, but
I'm going to be fine. I may need a hug every now and
again, but I'll make it, you just watch. Now I need to
get dressed you mind?" Kat shook her head but gave
Tangye another quick hug before climbing off the young
woman's lap and leaving the room. "Good Lord Tangye,
stop looking in corners. They are gone, hopefully all of
them for a while. C'mon you stupid 'talent' cooperate for
once. I could use a break." She demanded of herself.
The tears began to form again but she wiped at them
angrily. "Enough, you made Kat a promise, now keep
it."

*****

Alex was thoroughly enjoying the day. She had woken up
expecting to spend the day in front of the computer doing
research on the scroll delivered to the house earlier in
the week or the disturbances in the local neighborhood.
She had been a little surprised when Derek even agreed to
let her go out with Tangye for the afternoon to outfit
the young woman, but he had seen the need for this trip
in both of them. Now with the Luna Foundation credit card
in hand they had already filled five bags. Alex had a
very good sense of Tangye's style preferences. She had
picked out only a few dresses, but several pairs of
jeans, T-shirts, sweaters and long sleeve sporty tight
shirts. She had also grabbed several workout outfits. But
mostly Alex was surprised by Tangye's penchant for shoes.
They had already bought five pairs and she was compelled
into every shoe store they passed. Mostly she seemed
drawn to very high heel, clunky black shoes, though she
did make sure to buy a pair of tennis shoes.

The woman she saw emerging in front of her constantly
surprised Alex. She had been telling jokes throughout the
day, some of which were raunchier then anything Alex
could ever remember hearing. She also proved very
intelligent, telling Alex stories about digs she had read
about years ago. Her memory for those details astounded
the researcher. She could name the artifact; years found
and made, the people involved in the expeditions, as well
as any other number of details. Though she had never had
a chance to decide what she would study in college Alex
got a sense that she would have ended up in archeology or
anthropology. Her smile was so bright and alive when it
turned to look at Alex as she had made new discoveries in
the racks. She was complicated; deep with constantly
exposed new levels and the slightly older Cajun woman
found she admired that. Tangye Gaarlihn was not going to
be an easy puzzle and Alex found herself anticipating
that discovery process. Alex quickly realized she had
made a new dear friend.

Only Alex's Sight was troubling her throughout the
trip. She could feel the pain still heavy in the girl's
mind and heart. She watched the internal battle being
waged to defeat that pain. She knew that the few times
Tangye had excused herself off to the restroom she had
just reached an emotional end but didn't want to have
anyone see her weak for a moment. That tore Alex Moreau
up. She wanted to help, to let Tangye know that she did
not need to hide. To make it clear that no longer did the
battle have to be fought alone. But she didn't want to
push, to ask more from Tangye then she knew how to give
yet.

Alex was pulled away from her reflection of the
venture when Tangye suddenly called her name. They stood
in amongst racks of jackets.

"Alex, this is great." She spun around
holding up the black leather jacket.

"Then try it on." She pulled away the hanger
and slipped the coat on. It was tapered at the waist but
hung down halfway to her knees. It was a perfect fit and
very flattering. Alex just grinned. "Looks great,
and it goes with the shoes." She teased as she had
been all afternoon ever since Tangye gave a rather
passionate speech on shoes and why she loved them.
"That everything?"

"What time is it?" Alex glanced at her
watch.

"Quarter to three." Alex realized she was
slightly disappointed to find their day was almost over.
She was enjoying answering Tangye's many questions about
New Orleans and her life in general, but she knew that
the younger woman had plans with Philip.

"Okay so we have time to pick up the hiking
boots, pay for this stuff and get home in time for me to
meet Philip for the mass?" Alex nodded a grin on her
face.

"Another pair of shoes?" The joke was stated
clearly enough.

"Those are important, I might need them at some
time. Plus, I told you I like to go hiking, practical,
see?" Tangye jumped to her own defense.

"We should grab you a watch too." She nodded
gathering up another stack of clothes and heading to the
jewelry counter. Alex wasn't really surprised when Tangye
choose a beautiful silver man's watch rather then a
daintier woman's watch. Finally at the checkout counter a
woman in her mid-twenties came up to ring up their
purchases. As soon as Tangye looked up at her an anxious
look took over her eyes and she started looking around as
if for help.

"Oh, my God. I don't believe this." The
cashier gasped. Alex watched the expressions on both
their faces, Tangye's nervous; the cashier's excited.
"Tangye Gaarlihn? I haven't seen you since
graduation. Do you remember me?"

"Yeah, Kristy, um Peters, right?" She
stammered helplessly. Obviously this was a situation she
was not interested in being in.

"Peterson, well it was. It's actually Wright now.
I got married two years ago." Tangye just stared at
her blankly. "I can't believe I haven't seen you in
all these years. What have you been up to? You went to
Brown, right?"

"Ah, I, ah, got a little derailed. I never made
it there." She rubbed at her face and seemed to
wince involuntarily at some memory. Alex wanted to step
in but didn't know how to interfere.

"You're kidding, right? What could have derailed
the class valedictorian?" Kristy seemed so at ease
but Alex didn't get the feeling that she had ever really
been friends with Tangye, certainly not close anyway.

Tangye finally made eye contact and with startling
harshness answered, "Things, things got in the
way." Now Alex really felt the need to step in.
Tangye had been coping well but she had a lot of anger
still stored up over what had been denied her. Having
some innocent bystander remind her of all those things
could prove very dangerous. Alex got the feeling that
Tangye Gaarlihn, despite her instinctive sweetness, was
not a person that people should anger.

"Excuse, I don't mean to be rude but we're in a
bit of a hurry. Tangye has an appointment to keep
later." Alex held the card out to Kristy and the
saleswoman just nodded, obviously shocked by the look she
was receiving from her schoolmate.

"Alex, I'm gonna " Tangye gestured
towards the restrooms she had staked out quite some time
ago. Without waiting for a response from her companion
the telepath just quickly wandered off.

"Well, some things never change." Kristy
mumbled under her breath as she started to punch in the
codes from their purchases.

"What's that mean?" Alex turned back, trying
to push aside, for the moment at least, the hurt she had
just seen so present.

"Tangye Gaarlihn was always weird. She's
edgy, rude." Kristy answered absently, not even
seeming to think that the comment might be offensive to
Tangye's companion.

"Sometimes people have the right to be."
Alex answered back brusquely silencing any more comments
from the woman. She was sure now that these two had never
been friends. Kristy was probably just the type that
needed popularity even if she didn't really like the
people she got it from, as long as everyone knew her
name. After she had been rung up the researcher went in
search of her friend.

"Tangye? Are you here?" She pushed the door
open a crack and found the brunette at the sink staring
into the mirror. As soon as Alex walked in the room she
turned away to hide her face, but her body spoke clearly
enough the emotions Alex would have seen there. The
tenseness of it, the way the head was hung so defeated.
"Don't try to hide."

"I had to get away from her." Her voice came
back low, barely creating the words but amplified by the
empty room. "I was having a good time, I didn't need
a reminder."

"But you will have them, there's no avoiding
that." Alex answered back softly, her voice sharing
in Tangye's pain.

"She's married. God, that's just That's it.
That's where everyone I know will be. They'll have
careers, husbands, boyfriends at least, some even kids.
Where am I? I lost seven years, and for most of that time
I didn't even know how many years had passed. I never
thought it would be that many though. That they would be
that important." She turned around, not bothering to
wipe at the tears. "I'm almost twenty-five, and I
have What? That's what I can't figure out. What do
I have, what did I get to keep? I was supposed to go to
Brown two weeks ago, and then all of a sudden seven years
are gone. I haven't done anything. My driver's license
isn't even good anymore. Is this what I have to look
forward to? A bunch of new reminders of what I lost?
Dammit." She turned away again. The diatribe had
come out so passionately, it clearly stated all the
frustration that she had been feeling. To Alex it served
as a reminder of just how much had been lost. She hadn't
wanted to think about it but they were pivotal years that
were robbed of her. "When did I become a
whiner?"

"You've earned a bit of whining." She put a
gentle hand on Tangye's shoulder, her heart breaking at
the tone of desperation she heard. It had created plenty
of questions for the psychic too. Why did it have to
happen? Why did it have to last so long? What did this
girl ever do to deserve the hand she was dealt? None of
the questions had answers, though, and that just made it
worse.

"But it's not me. You cope. That's always the way
it was. I was different from day one and I coped with
that as best I could. This though " She faced
Alex, her head still hung, eyes turned to look up at the
gentle face of the woman with her. Alex was surprised to
see such determination there. "This isn't going to
beat me. Damage done, no more. I don't go silently into
the night." She said it so strongly that Alex was
certain she was right. She knew she wasn't just past the
pain because she decided to be, and she knew this was
probably not the last time the young woman would feel the
need to retreat to gather herself together. But Tangye
Gaarlihn would not be beaten for long; she would not stay
down.

"Good." Alex nodded knowing there was little
else to be said. "As for your driver's license,
piece of advice, don't let Nick tutor you for the test.
He's not very big on the laws which makes a bad
teacher." The joke worked to get the smile Alex had
hoped for. The magical smile that she knew the whole
Legacy would fall prey to in time.

*****

Reverend Mitchell sat at his desk in his small parish
office working on the monthly financial reports. Luckily
Wednesday afternoon was usually quiet in the church so he
had plenty of time to get the tedious work done. Suddenly
the papers were caught in a wind and blown off the desk.
He turned quickly to check the window but found it
closed. He shrugged, assuming that the air conditioning
must be on the fritz again; things like that were always
happening. He pushed back his chair and gathered up the
papers. He put the stack on the desk, dropping a heavy
metal paperweight on them and went to check on the
controls.

It had been a long week already, last night he had
spent three hours at the hospital with Karin Welsh whose
son and husband were both admitted after an attack, or a
series of incredible accidents. He still didn't know
which it had been. There had been enough accidents
without explanation in the small neighborhood that it
seemed less like coincidence and more like a warning of
some sort. To what he didn't know but as he had sat in
the hospital waiting room with the woman the night before
he had been struck by an intense feeling of foreboding.
There was a danger in the area, but what it was he could
not say.

He stopped in front of the control to the air
conditioning his dark eyes growing wide when he saw that
it was off. Then what had caused the wind in the office?
Before he had too much time to contemplate the question
he heard the soft sounds of a woman crying.

He spun around and quickly realized that the sound was
coming from above him. His eyes glanced upward knowing
that no one could be in the steeple but not able to deny
what he was hearing. Resolving himself to face whatever
he found he went back to his office to get the key to
steeple door. The tension was heavy within him by this
time but he pressed forward. Stepping into his office he
was shocked by the sight before him. The papers he had
carefully stacked on his desk were scattered across the
floor. He picked up the paperweight and looked around
cautiously. "I know I put this on them. What is
going on here?"

"They shall pay for what they did. All shall
pay." The sound came from upstairs still mixed in
with the sobs. Grabbing the keys he went to the steeple,
climbing the stairs with hesitation. He wasn't really
surprised to find it empty but it still froze his heart.
He looked out over the neighborhood, so peaceful in the
afternoon but peace was not what he felt. Something was
here, he was sure of it, and it was hurting people. He
felt helpless to do anything though which came as a
crushing blow to the sixty year old man who dedicated his
life to this neighborhood. 'You shall pay.' The voice
spoke behind him but when he turned there was still
nothing there, except a cold gust of wind.

"Pay for what?" He whispered back.

*****

Philip called upstairs getting a little nervous by the
passing time. He would make it to the church just in time
if they left right now and he certainly didn't want to be
late.

"Okay, okay, I'm here." Her response came
back amused.

She came around the corner and he was taken back by
the transformation. There was no denying that she was a
pretty girl with a beauty that it was difficult to put
into words. He had recognized that from the first time he
had seen her. It was a combination of the elements that
made her stand out. The small little nose so well
proportioned to her face, the full lips in a natural sort
of pout, her round cheeks graced on one side with a deep
dimple. And her hair and eyes were nothing if not
stunning.

But now as she came down the stairs wearing a steel
blue sundress with small antique white flowers on it and
cropped loose knit sweater over it, she was nothing short
of gorgeous. Her hair was like silk as it bounced around
her soft face and her eyes seemed to sparkle in her
enjoyment. He took in all the details of her and was
surprised by how many he had missed. How this morning her
beauty had been simple and hidden, while she truly was
much more then that. She was a picture of beauty
undeniably in her own way. Philip took in all the details
noticing the oversized man's watch worn loosely on her
right wrist, the sunglasses she held in her other hand
along with the leather jacket she had bought that day.
She jumped off the last few steps landing right in front
of him.

"You beckoned?" She lightly asked with a
grin.

"We need to be goin'." She nodded and they
started for the door. "You look lovely Tangye.
You'll put the other parishioners to shame." He said
hesitantly.

"Thank you Father." She just grinned more up
at him.

"Hold on." She spun around to see Nick
running down the stairs to them. He wore dark blue jeans
and a white dress shirt as well as a tie hung loosely
around his neck. Though he was not really dressed up it
was a definite change from Nick's normal attire. He
joined them at the door and smiled down at Tangye.
"Philip hates to drive, figured I could give you a
lift. If you don't mind?" He checked her face for
permission.

"Why would I?" Her hand found his naturally,
making his smile broaden.

"Thought I'd go in with her and I didn't want to
be," he turned to her, "outdone." He
noticed Philip's curious expression, surprise showing
that Nick would even consider going in. "Well, it's
her first mass in awhile, didn't want her to be sitting
there alone." She looked at him with raised eyebrows
and chuckled slightly as she pulled her jacket on.

"It's not the high school cafeteria Nick, no
popularity contest where I'm the uncoolest person there
if I'm alone." Nick just shrugged and Philip decided
not to try and pursue the issue. He knew Nick's aversion
to churches in general, especially the one he had been
raised in, though, he rarely spoke of it or why it came
about. He also knew full well that Nick had not recently
discovered God, he clearly saw the young man's true
motives for wanting to go. Nick wanted to spend as much
time as he could with this young woman and was even
willing to suffer through mass to do so. Philip grinned
privately at his friend's surprising act but made no
comment fearing he would change Nick's mind.

When he had first seen her he felt all his breath
leave his body. She was so beautiful to him and he hadn't
failed to notice how her smile grew when she saw him.
'That's a good sign, Nick. But Derek was right, you have
to take it slow.' The thought had just passed through his
mind when she raised up and kissed him on the cheek. It
was brief but her feelings were clear all the same. She
felt the attraction to him as well. She slipped her arm
around his and led him out of the house to where his
Mustang was parked.

*****

"Alex where is Nick?" Derek asked as he
stepped past the hologram into the control room. Alex
looked up from the search she was running on the scroll
they had received.

"I think he went with Tangye and Philip."
She answered absently, her amusement clear on her face.

"To church?" Derek asked surprised but then
he seemed to think better of pursuing the issue. He had
seen Nick's passion this morning in his office and felt
that Nick would suffer any number of indignities for the
girl. Nick could be so passionate and sometimes got in
over his head too quickly. Derek often found Nick's
intense emotions to be one of his strongest assets, but
it could also serve as his weakness. Derek had forced
himself not to express the depth of his concern over
Nick's growing feelings. He had told Nick that they
should take things slowly but really he thought it better
they not get involved at all. Certainly they shouldn't
even be starting the slow process so soon anyway.

Tangye was clearly trying to hide from what had been
done to her rather then face it and Derek didn't want to
think that his colleague was being used as a diversion to
her pain. She had a great deal to face and a lot of
readjusting to do and the precept felt it better that she
be allowed to do that on her own, without any additional
pressure. He had decided to trust Nick's judgements
though, the younger man obviously somehow instinctively
understood her. There was a connection between them that
Derek didn't fully understand yet. That was clear just in
the fact that he had been a major part in pulling her
free of both her prisons. The one of her house and the
one she constructed in her mind to protect herself.

He was a bit worried about just what would happen with
the woman but when he pictured her face his concerns
seemed to slip away. There was honesty to her face that
made it hard not to trust her. Derek couldn't deny that
he felt his own connection to her for some reason and
looked forward to spending time with her. To learning
about her, and from her. He pulled himself back to the
present, deciding there was little he could do
immediately.

"What have you been able to find out?" He
asked Alex.

He sat next to her and looked at the screen.
"Actually we're nearly done. Philip's only got a few
more lines left on the translation and it's dated. Made
of papyrus around 900 AD. Did Philip tell you Tangye
helped him with the translation?" Derek looked at
her, surprised yet again, she nodded. "When we got
back in from shopping she popped into the library to let
him know she would be ready to go soon. She looked down
at the scroll and just started reading it like it was in
English, which of course it isn't." Alex gestured at
the odd arcane symbols. "He said she managed to get
a few of the words he was missing, he wondered if he
could get her to help with the rest if you don't
mind?"

"No, of course not. It might help her. Philip
told me she has this idea that she owes us. She expressed
the same concerns to me earlier today." Derek
thought back to his discussion this morning before she
and Alex had left for the city. He remembered the look in
her eyes, like it actually hurt her to accept the money
he offered her. The assurance in her voice that she would
pay him back once the legal matters with her inheritance
were handled. He wasn't about to let her but that could
be dealt with later. "Did you enjoy yourself
today?" He asked curious to get the sensitive
woman's opinion of their guest.

"Yes." Alex answered quickly, a fond smile
on her warm face. "Derek she's amazing. I sense the
pain in her but I also feel the strength in her to defeat
it. She feels very alone, and I think she believes that
is how she has to face this. She retreated a few times to
the bathroom when I guess it got to be too much for her.
She doesn't know that I figured it out but she was really
upset and didn't want anyone to see that."

"She's used to dealing with these things alone I
suppose." Derek nodded.

"There was also a situation at the mall. We ran
into someone she went to high school with who had no idea
what had happened to her. The girl was married now and it
just hit Tangye how much she missed out on. I talked to
her about it and she insisted that she was going to get
through it. If you could have seen the determination in
her eyes you couldn't deny it in the face of
that." Alex said, lost for a moment in the memory of
the intense strength she had seen.

"She did the same thing with me last night."
Rachel spoke coming in the room. "I think she
believes it too. She will not let anything beat her down
again. But it will be too much at times. From what I've
learned about her she was always very
extreme." Rachel hesitated for the right word.

"Should that concern us?" Derek asked. They
hadn't really had any time to talk about what Rachel had
learned, and now Alex could offer her own opinions.
Between the two women he was sure he would be given a
good sense of the young woman.

"Right now we need to give her time. She is
dealing with a lot. She'll fluctuate between emotions,
one moment fine, one moment not, then fine again.
Dr. Berton said that she was always very emotional, felt
everything to an extreme. She's very intense, but that's
not really new to us. Nick's much the same way."
Derek had recognized the description Rachel was giving
already. Nick could be angry one moment then drop it in a
second; in fact he did it with all his emotions. Intense
but easily moved through. "As long as you know what
we're getting into I think we can help her."

Alex nodded her agreement. "I know she has a long
road ahead of her but I'm sure she'll come out of this
okay. She doesn't talk much about any part of her past
but she wants to get back into life so desperately. She
refuses to be defeated now." Alex suddenly smiled
brightly. "And I'll warn you, I don't know where she
heard some of the jokes she was telling me but they would
make Nick blush." He saw her enthusiasm written on
her beautiful face. "I like her, Derek. I hate that
anyone managed to hurt her and that she feels she needs
to hide it, but I like her. I think she belongs
here."

Derek was a little surprised by Alex's declaration but
couldn't argue it. Even if he didn't know that indeed she
had family ties to the Legacy he had sensed that her
presence was somehow right in the house. "In due
time Alex, I think it's important to take things slowly
for now. Like you said she's trying to hide from what
happened and that poses a risk. We don't know when it
will hit her, and until it does we can't expect to have
her as an active member." Derek kept his tone
professional, ever the precept of the house despite his
desire just to give in to his stronger emotions.

Alex noticed that he didn't dismiss the idea, in fact
he had already seemed to accept that she would be invited
to stay. She couldn't help but grin at that thought. She
had thoroughly enjoyed her day with the younger girl and
thought it would be nice to have a little sister in the
house. She loved Kat dearly but she still only was a
child. Having someone closer to her age, someone with as
much to offer as she sensed in Tangye, would definitely
be nice.

"What exactly is the scroll?" Derek asked
returning to the object of Alex's study.

"Philip has translated as a code of laws for some
sort of more primitive society. It's really nothing very
interesting, just typical laws most societies have."
Alex answered with an indifferent shrug.

"Don't sound disappointed that's there is no
curse with it, still it will make a nice addition to the
museum." Derek smiled at her. "Let me know when
Nick gets back, there's been another disturbance and I'd
like him to check it out. How's that project
coming?"

"Nothing much new at this point. It's just such a
broad area to investigate." Alex answered taping at
the computer to return to her other task.

"Keep looking." Derek said, despite his
frustration over their lack of progress.

"Of course." He nodded and started to leave
but stopped at Alex's voice. "Derek they should be
finished at the church by now why don't you just call
him? I'm sure he'd appreciate not coming all the way over
only to be sent back to the city." He looked at her,
he had already thought of that but wasn't sure that he
wanted Tangye tagging along. Alex could read his concern.
"She'll be fine Derek, she knows her place and won't
get in any trouble." Alex decided it was better not
to comment on the rather hard headed side of Tangye she
had witnessed earlier in the day. She just seemed to get
an idea in her head and it stuck there, even when arguing
with a store clerk.

"Yes I suppose." He sighed, still not sure
but deciding that Nick would do whatever necessary to
keep the young woman safe.

*****

"Yeah, sure we can, actually we aren't far from
there now. Okay, yeah I'll call." Nick flipped the
phone shut and handed it over to Tangye rather then
struggle to get it back in his pocket. "So you were
saying?" He turned his green hazel eyes back to her.

"So the guy says, 'don't listen to sheep, sheep
lie.'" Nick laughed at the punch line and only
laughed harder when he heard Philip gasp from the back
seat.

"Tangye, where did you hear these things?"
Philip asked, though, he found the jokes amusing he was
surprised that she could prattle off so many off color
jokes. Ever since leaving the church she and Nick had
been in a competition to see who could make the priest in
the back seat blush harder. He was still reeling from the
one about the donuts and cheerios.

"Um, I was seven, maybe eight. The spirit of a
construction worker came around and he took great
pleasure in infuriating the others by teaching me these
jokes, he knew hundreds of them. He told me it was as
important as my Latin lessons; my Latin tutor lost it. I
didn't know what any of them meant but I memorized them
all." She shrugged. Nick shot Philip a quick glance
in the back seat. It was the first direct mention she had
made of the past in the last few hours and they both saw
it as progress, even if those were the fond memories.

"I think I would have too, you were just a wee
chil'." Philip said surprised that someone would
even dream to teach a child such things.

"Well you should have seen my teachers face when
I told one of them in class, I thought she'd have a heart
attack right there. After that I kept them to
myself." She shot him a wicked little grin. Rather
then pursue the topic and hear another one of her jokes
Philip turned to look at Nick.

"What did Derek want?" Philip asked.

"We need to stop by a house and talk to a woman
experiencing a haunting. Same neighborhood as the others
and he wants us to get some information from her. See if
she has anything new to offer." He turned to look at
Tangye. "You're staying in the car." He added
quickly.

"Fine by me." She answered. She didn't want
to tell either of them how uncomfortable it made her to
think of hearing someone else's story of their own
haunting. She hated the fact that she had given in to the
tears already so many times, though other then the one
time with Alex she had avoided being seen. She wanted to
stay in control of herself; she wanted to win the battle
she felt inside. The one side said just to give in, that
she had lost a long time ago and pretending wasn't going
to change anything. The other side of herself refused to
give up just yet. She knew that neither of the men in the
car would be disappointed to see her give in but she was
enjoying the time with them. Right now denying it all
seemed better then facing an unchangeable past. She
turned her eyes to gaze at the buildings while Nick
explained to Philip everything that Derek had told him,
she tried to force his words to stay far away from her
unsuccessfully.

"She got shoved down the steps of her house
yesterday, and her husband and teenage son were both
attacked in the kitchen. Her son has a concussion from a
pot that hit him in the head, and her husband is still in
the hospital from a nasty knife wound in the arm."
She bit down hard on her pinky finger, fighting the flash
of memory. The feeling of herself tumbling down the attic
steps, grabbing in vain at the banister which gave way
under her momentum. Lying at the bottom of the steps
trying to figure out what she could have done this time
to bring on the attack. Trying to stay still and go
unnoticed. It never worked though; none of her tactics to
be overlooked ever worked. It had just infuriated him
more when she tried to hide from him.

She forced herself to concentrate on Nick's voice
rather then face what she saw in her mind.

"Did Derek say if she had any additional
information?" Philip asked trying to get a handle on
the situation.

"I don't think he knew, he just got the call from
Karmack because of the other events in the area and
Karmack knew we were investigating them. Derek just wants
us to talk to the woman see if she has and new
information." Nick shrugged; neither man could see
the tears building behind Tangye's sunglasses.
"There's still a chance it could just be a domestic
case and they're trying to cover it up. Could just be
coincidence that it happened there." Nick added
absently, never willing to go first to the supernatural
when other explanations were possible.

Philip decided not to comment on his friend's
attitude, Nick knew better to write these things off but
no words from Philip would change him. Nick started
checking the street names as they drove and after a few
more blocks took a right into a small neighborhood. About
halfway down a block three streets over he pulled the car
over to the side of the road. "Here we go." He
said as Philip climbed out of the back seat from behind
Tangye. Nick reached over and laid his hand on Tangye's
leg, she jumped at the simple gesture. Her sudden silence
hadn't gone unnoticed but Nick had told himself not to
pry and was fighting to do just that.

She turned to look at him, forcing a weak, and
extremely fake, smile on her face. He could see the way
her bottom lip was quivering and felt a pang of guilt for
taking her here. "You gonna be okay? This shouldn't
take long." He tried to sound reassuring.

She nodded, not trusting her voice not to betray her.
He gave her hand a squeeze and also climbed out of the
car, joining his friend on the sidewalk. Together they
walked up to the house, each looking nervously back at
the car once. They knocked and a few moments later the
door was pulled open for them, before they entered Nick
shot her one last glance to be sure she was still intact.

Once they were in the house she let go of the gasping
sob that had built in her throat. "Dammit," she
cursed under her breath no longer able to win the battle
with her tears. She had spent so much time crying over
the last years she wasn't sure anymore where the tears
were coming from but they were always there, just waiting
for her resolve to vanish. Like so many other things that
had come when she was at her weakest. Though, the others
had always taken special pleasure in getting her when she
was at her strongest as well, really they had needed no
excuse to overwhelm her.

*****

She led Nick and Philip into the living room
indicating they have a seat on the couch. "Detective
Karmack told me you would be coming by, he explained that
you do private investigations. I have to tell you I'm not
really sure that I understand any of this." Karin
Welsh hesitated.

"We'll try to help in anyway that we can. We'd
like you to explain everything that you remember
happening and then if it's not too much trouble we'd like
to see the scene." She nodded at the young priest in
front of her. She was surprised that both of these men
seemed so painfully young to her, but their faces were
also more serious then they should be at that age.
"Can we start at the beginning? Has anything like
this ever occurred in the house before?"

"Not here no, but " She thought twice
about finishing the thought, knowing how crazy it
sounded.

"But what?" Nick prodded.

She began hesitantly, not wanting to sound crazy.
"I've heard, stories. No one ever really talks about
it openly but you hear things whispered at block parties
and on the street. And the children, they don't know how
crazy it all sounds so they talk about it freely.
Supposedly others have had, disturbances?" She
looked at them and Philip nodded her on, agreeing with
her choice of words. He glanced at Nick, this was
information that they already had but perhaps this woman
had heard something they had not been able to find out.

*****

Tangye picked the baseball hat from the floor,
gripping it tightly, concentrating on the owner.
Remembering the strength that he had given her to defeat
her parents. Now, even more then that time, she felt that
she needed his strength. She didn't know how much more
she could possibly have left despite her adamant
proclamations to the people who had taken her in. She
traced her fingers over the letters on the hat and a
smile found it's way onto her face just picturing the man
who owned it. His kind eyes, his whispered comfort, the
strong arms that held her through the night. She was
attracted to him psychically but it was more then that.
There was an understanding in his eyes that she found so
rarely in her life. She wanted to get to know him, and
knew he felt the same way, but she wanted it to be for
the right reasons. She didn't want him to feel he had to
support her, she wanted to share with him.

She put the hat on, keeping her brown hair out of her
face. She pulled her sunglasses off and wiped away at the
last of the newest set of tears. She needed to talk to
someone, to get these things out of her mind. Years ago
she would have run to Brian but her father had made sure
to take that shelter away from her. Everyone at the
Legacy seemed willing to help her but she wasn't sure yet
that she should take that risk over again. What if they
could come back, what if they made the Legacy pay for
ever getting involved? She leaned back against the seat
not sure what she could do anymore. For now she would
have to keep it quiet, hide behind whatever facade
worked. She was alone and it seemed safer that way.

She caught the motion out of the corner of her eye.
Slipping her sunglasses back on she looked out of the car
rear view mirror and saw the woman walking down the road.
She turned in the seat and followed the woman with her
eyes. She knew immediately what the woman was and
couldn't find the strength in her voice to say anything.
She had grown up around them, she knew them well, and
once she had trusted them. Now she only felt a deep fear
about even being near one.

Suddenly the woman turned, her eyes locking with
Tangye's. Tangye felt the breath catch in her throat when
the woman spoke. "You see me." Tangye nodded
dumbly. "Why is that?"

"I just can." She whispered, knowing she
didn't need her voice to be heard. She reached down and
opened the car door sliding out. She stepped back out of
instinct when the woman started to approach.